IDs to become invalid as Kenya switches to Huduma cards

Kenyans will start receiving Huduma Namba cards from next month in a gradual rollout that will see current national identity cards invalidated in December next year.

ICT Cabinet secretary Joe Mucheru said countrywide issuance of the Huduma Cards would commence in the next two weeks.

The rollout targets three million Kenyans by January and another five million in February.

Kenyans, he said, would receive text messages from the State directing them where they would collect their Huduma Namba Cards within a month.

“If by any chance you will not have a Huduma Namba card by December 12, 2021, this means you will not be able to access government services,” said Mr Mucheru told the Business Daily yesterday.

He said there would be a fresh round of mass registration for National Integrated Identity Management System (NIIMS), commonly known as Huduma Nambas in April, targeting Kenyans who failed to beat last year’s deadline.

During the voluntary national registration exercise, which was conducted last April, the government captured the data of 38 million people before the May 21 deadline at a cost Sh9.6 billion. This means that 9.6 million Kenyans are yet to list for Huduma Namba based on latest census data.

Under NIIMS, the State was to combine all vital documents including the national ID, passport, driving licence, National Social Security Fund and the National Hospital Insurance Fund numbers.

Those registered provided a photo, information about themselves and their parents or guardians. Also required were details like the place of birth, phone number, e-mail address, physical and permanent residence and marital status.

Data collected through the Huduma Namba registration will be stored in the Integrated Population Registration System — the central location for easy electronic access by institutions, including private corporations that provide crucial and sensitive services.

At the touch of a button, it would produce one’s details stored at the various registries, including births and deaths, marriages and divorce as well as passport, among others.

ID cards and citizenship registers.

Such details will be linked and relayed in real time to agencies like the Lands registry, the National Social Security Fund, law enforcement agencies, the National Hospital Insurance Fund, the Kenya Revenue Authority, financial agencies, Immigrations, the National Transport and Safety Authority, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission and universities.